Measuring What Matters: General Assembly’s First Student Outcomes Report

Since founding General Assembly in 2011, I’ve heard some incredible stories from our students and graduates. One of my favorites is about Jerome Hardaway. Jerome came to GA after five years in the United States Air Force. He dreamed of tackling persistent diversity gaps in the technology sector by breaking down barriers for other veterans and people of color.

Exceptional stories like Jerome’s embody GA’s mission of “empowering people to pursue the work they love.” It’s a mission that motivates our instructional designers, faculty, mentors, and career coaches. It also inspired the development of an open source reporting framework which defined GA’s approach to measuring student outcomes and now, our first report with verified student outcomes metrics.

We know that anecdotes don’t always equate to statistical outcomes, and that students enroll in our programs for different reasons. We believe that transparency in reporting student outcomes is the best way to empower students whose goals, life circumstances, and career paths differ widely. We hope that rigorous measurement, paired with a relentless focus on outcomes, can foster a culture of accountability without stifling innovation. That’s why we asked KPMG LLP to review the graduation and placement rates included in the tables on page 20 of this student outcomes report.

While this report represents the culmination of a 12-month commitment from our team, it is just the first step in a process that we hope can inform a paradigm shift in how we think about measuring and reporting on outcomes across the education-to-employment landscape.

About Jake Schwartz

Jake Schwartz is the co-founder and chief executive officer of General Assembly. As a specialized educational institution for 21st century skills in data, design, business and technology, General Assembly (GA) is empowering a global community to pursue work they love through best-in-class instruction and access to opportunities. GA works with students online and in person across 25 campuses around the world and hundreds of companies as partners in course development and graduate placement as well as through GA’s corporate training and development business.
General Assembly was named as the number one most innovative company in education by Fast Company in 2015.
Schwartz was named E&Y Entrepreneur of the Year in 2014, and was recently named one of Crain’s “40 under 40." He earned a B.A. in American Studies from Yale in 2000 and a M.B.A. in Entrepreneurial Management from Wharton in 2008.

General Assembly is a pioneer in education and career transformation, specializing in today’s most in-demand skills. The leading source for training, staffing, and career transitions, we foster a flourishing community of professionals pursuing careers they love.